President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday directed Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to launch a large-scale operation against street criminals in Karachi, dacoits in the katcha area and drug traffickers throughout Sindh in close coordination with other provinces.
“I have zero tolerance for the illegal occupation of lands, and it must be stopped once and for all,” he firmly told the chief minister while presiding over a special law and order meeting at the Chief Minister House, urging CM Shah to provide a posting tenure to police officers, monitor their performance, and remove them when they fail to deliver.
President Asif Zardari directed the chief minister to control street crime by launching a special operation.
“The operation must deliver results so that confidence of the citizens could be developed,” he said.
He also instructed the chief minister to ensure that foreign nationals living and working in Sindh were provided with foolproof security, emphasising the need to look after the Chinese nationals working on projects related to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.
The meeting was also attended by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, IT Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, provincial ministers Sharjeel Memon, Nasir Shah and Ziaul Hassan Lanjar and other officials.
The chief minister earlier welcomed President Zardari and told him that the general law and order concerning street crime in Karachi and the dacoits factor in the katcha area had improved.
He mentioned the peaceful conduct of the Iranian president’s visit and one-day stay in Karachi.
“The conduct of PSL (Pakistan Super League) and international cricket matches and religious events are manifestations of the improved law and order situation,” he said.
CM Shah told the president that he had been monitoring the law and order situation in the province daily, reviewing the situation through meetings and instructions to the law enforcement agencies.
President briefed on law and order
The president was told that crimes against people during the first four months of the year were reported at 5,357 as against 5,259 during the corresponding period in 2023, showing a decrease of 172 cases.
Crimes against property were recorded at 10,757 cases in 2024 while they were 9,782 in 2023, showing an increase of 975 cases.
Similarly, local, and special law cases showed a decrease of 785 cases by reporting 9,040 cases.
To a question, the president was told that in January, 252.32 street crime cases were reported per day and in February the number of street crime cases was 251.96 per day. The trend of street crime decreased in March and April when 243.35 cases per day and 166.2 cases per day were reported respectively.
To a separate question, Zardari was told that out of 48 cases of street crime which claimed 49 lives, 27 were detected by arresting 43 suspects, while 13 were killed in encounters.
CM Shah informed the president that Karachi in 2014 was ranked sixth in the world crime index but had now dropped to 82 in 2024.
The Chief Minister mentioned that the ranks and crime indexes of several major cities were higher than Karachi’s.
The president responded that other cities might have higher crime rates for certain reasons but Karachi had a high crime rate without any tangible reasons.
President Zardari said that stolen vehicles and mobile phones were sold in the market in parts, adding that this was not something known to the police and others.
“Why are the police not taking operations against the markets and people involved in the business of stolen vehicles and mobile sets,” he questioned, directing CM Shah to start action against them and report the progress to him.
The president was informed that steps taken by the police to control street crime included the re-activation of the Shaheen Force with the deployment of 386 motorcycles, revamping of Madadgar-15 with the deployment of an additional 168 vehicles and 120 motorbikes, e-tagging of repeat offenders with a proposal for 4000 devices and the Sindh Smart Surveillance System project for 40 toll plazas having facial recognition cameras.
Siddiqui welcomed the president’s meeting on law and order in Karachi and said it would develop the citizens’ confidence in the government. He requested the president to hold such meetings every month.
Katcha area progress
President Zardari was told that 107 police pickets were established along the left bank of the Indus river since February 2023.
He directed the chief minister to set up police pickets on the right bank of the river to cover the katcha areas of the Shikarpur and Kashmore districts.
The president was told that during the last four months, 103 persons were kidnapped, of which 76 were reported, while 47 were not. He was further informed that the police recovered 104 and 19 were outstanding.
The president was also told that the police, during the operation against dacoits, killed 63, injured 120 and arrested 418 while 469 weapons of different kinds were recovered in the four months.
Furthermore, he was informed that 17 policemen were martyred while 27 were injured in the operation.
The president directed CM Shah to intensify the ongoing operation against the dacoits, emphasising that anyone involved or behind the kidnapping cases must be dealt with severely to set an example for others.
“Kidnapping for ransom is a serious crime, and it must be dealt with accordingly,” the president said.
President Zardari directed the chief minister to complete the Karachi Safe City project on a war footing and start the dualisation of the Northern Bypass to make entry and exit points effective.
He also directed CM Shah to start development works along both sides of the Indus river.
Zardari also directed the chief minister to engage notables to resolve tribal feuds in the katcha areas so that its social aspect could also be covered.
The president instructed Naqvi to develop effective coordination for tri-border management between Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan.
He also ordered the interior minister to expedite work on the Ghotki-Kandhkot bridge so that law and order could be improved in the areas.
At this, Naqvi said that he had provided necessary security to the engineers working at the Ghotki-Kandhkot Bridge so that work could be completed at the earliest.
President Zardari further instructed the interior minister to obtain necessary approvals for Sindh police to procure sensitive weapons, equipment and gadgets from the federal government.
MQM-P delegation meets President
A delegation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan led by Siddiqui called on President Zardari at CM House and congratulated him on his election for the second tenure.
The MQM-P delegation discussed the street crime issue in the city with the president.
The president assured the MQM-P delegation that he would personally monitor the situation and see it improved.
“This is an important issue, therefore I have come here to review the overall law and order situation at the CM House,” the president said.